Holding Him Back
by LadyGuilt
Summary: After overhearing a conversation between Jack's parents, Kim starts to wonder if she is holding Jack back from reaching his full potential. And if she is, would she be able let him go? - KICK. OneShot.


**Disclaimer: **I'm not affiliated with_ Disney Channel_, _It's a Laugh Production_, _Poor Soul Production_ or the actors who portray the characters. No money was obtained on the making and distribution of this fanfiction. All characters, places and events are completely fictional. Any resemblance to real life, is completely coincidental.

**Warning: **English is not first language. This story has NOT being beta read. Strong Language, mild sensual situations.

**AN: **This is the first story I have finished for _Kickin' It_. Takes place a couple of years after the warriors left High School. Canon until season three but ignores season four (AKA Kim's parting from Seaford).

Read, Enjoy and Review!

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**Holding Him Back**

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"And that is all the time we have today, Seaford." Kim said softly, her slightly musical voice coming across thousands of radios at that moment. "Don't forget to play nice, but if you don't, call to give me all details tomorrow." That was the line she almost always uses to close her show, and according to ratings, it was a hit.

As her producer signaled to her that she was off the air, Kim grinned widely. "I'm out! I'll see you all tomorrow." Blowing a kiss through the clear glass window to her team, she picked up her bag and her cellphone and was out of the door before they could stop her. Not that they would try. They knew she was on her way to a very important meeting, and she was already running late.

The doors of the elevator closed practically on her face, and though she had wanted the convenience of the fast trip downstairs, she was now forced to wait for another elevator. Taking the time to check her messages while she waited, Kim almost winced when she heard Jack's voice on her voice mail reminding her of their lunch today. "Dammit, I'm going, I'm going." She murmured to herself, taking another peek at her watch. "Fuck." Sending a quick text to Jack letting him know she was on her way, she sprint away from the elevators, choosing the stairs instead.

_Should have done that from the beginning_. She thought nastily to herself, a long string of curses following behind that. She hated being rushed and usually she made sure to keep all her appointments at least two hours after she was supposed to be done with her show. Of course, she hadn't set up that date. Oh no, she had been _summoned_. And when Mrs. Brewer called: you simply had to comply.

Thankfully, things after that went smoothly for Kim and she was on the restaurant just twenty five minutes later than she had been expected.

"Good afternoon, Ma'am. How can I help you?" The Host seemed awfully young, and nervous.

"I'm meeting some friends. Brewer." Said Kim, smiling softly at him, hoping to put him at easy.

He looked down the leather tome that was on the podium and nodded his head quickly. "This way please." He started to lead Kim into the main floor of the restaurant, then stopped as if he was forgetting something, then started walking again.

Kim was surprised when they finally reached their destination to find that no one had arrived. _Figures_. She thought, taking a seat and accepting the menu from the host. He whispered that her waiter would be soon with her, then left so quickly that Kim wondered if someone had called him elsewhere. Her thoughts were brought back to her missing party when her text alarm when off. Slipping the cellphone from her purse, she saw that Jack and Rudy – who had been summoned as well by Mrs. Brewer – were running late. She was about to write back when she heard Jack's mom.

"Just where in heaven's name is Jack?" Kim turned around, but she didn't see her boyfriend's mother anywhere. "Seriously, I didn't raise him to be so impolite!" Frowning, Kim realize that the voice was coming from the thin wall behind her. _Had she been seat in the wrong side?_ She wondered, her thoughts flashing to the mess of a host. Yes, she could see him making a mistake. She tilted her head, hoping to confirmed that the Brewers were indeed on the other side, but the half wall that divided them also had decorative plants that blocked her view. Decided to simply stand and joined them, she was half out of her seat when she heard her name.

"This is that girl's fault. Kim." Said Mrs. Brewer viciously. "She had turned my sweet nature boy into an irresponsible mess!"

Shocked, Kim sat back down on her table. She had never heard such bitterness on Mrs Brewer's voice, and certainly never directed at her. Kim was aware that Jack's mother wasn't exactly a fan, but she never imaged that Mr. Brewers outright disliked her.

"Now, now, Dear. Kim is a great girl." Kim recognized Jack's father, and sighed, glad that someone was on her side.

"Oh she is all peachy. Which is why Jack is just where he is."

Kim narrowed her eyes and leaned closer, wanting to hear every word. When she saw the waiter coming towards her, she shook her and sent him away from her before he could even reached her table.

"Don't be petty, darling. Kim is a very intelligent, accomplished young lady. I, for once, really like her radio show."

Mrs. Brewer made a sound with the back of her throat, before speaking again. "I'm not arguing that. Her life had turn out pretty well. It's Jack's life that has me worried."

Kim had to resist the urge to prompt Mrs. Brewer to explain just what was wrong with Jack's life, outraged still at her comments. Thankfully, Mr. Brewer seemed at lost as to where his wife was heading as Kim herself, because he asked her. "What do you mean? I don't think there is nothing wrong with Jack's life. He has a job, is in college, is perfectly happy with Kim."

"Are you really that blind?" Mrs. Brewer asked her husband. "First, I'm not even going to get into Jack's living arrangements with Kim. Living in sin." She muttered the last part, before resuming a normal tone. "Jack has so much potential," She continued, and there was a pleading tone now, like she was begging her husband to see what she saw. "He is so intelligent, and had so many offers from universities all over the country. And where is he now? Community college, taking business management curses. He could be a doctor or a lawyer!"

"While I agree that Jack's choice in major was a bit puzzling, that's the point. He chose it."

"But don't you see? He didn't!" Cried Jack's mother. "He stayed in Seaford when he could have gone to Japan years ago. Why? Because of Kim and that damn Dojo. He could have gone to Harvard but instead he decided to stay here and go to community college instead." She paused, and Kim held her breath, dreading what was coming next. "The only reason he is taking business management is because Rudy," she spat the name, like it was something sour in her mouth. "Told him to. So it wasn't even his idea! He is a third degree black belt and trained in so many different styles, he should have his own dojo by now. Instead, he is a sensei with barely two classes, in a rundown dojo."

Clinging so tightly to her bag that her knuckles had gone white, Kim tried to remind herself she wasn't supposed to be hearing all that, so going towards their table and giving them a piece of her mind would not be productive. Especially, given the fact that Mrs. Brewer was Jack's mother and the last thing she needed was give the woman more reasons to be mad at her. But it stung her. It hurt her more than she was willing to admit to hear all those things coming from someone who Kim knew, loved Jack more than anything. Because Mrs Brewer was talking out of love, and that more than anything, made Kim start to wonder if maybe Mrs. Brewer was right. Maybe the dojo, the warriors and her, had been holding Jack back from reaching his whole potential.

"Jack loves Karate. He loves being a sensei." Despite her mental turmoil, Kim tried to keep her attention on the conversation. "Tell me something, why did you call them today? You obviously are very unhappy with Kim and Rudy. Beside, I really don't think Jack is going to be very happy with you if you were to voice any of this to them or him."

"I have an offer for Jack." Kim couldn't quite hear what Mrs. Brewer said next. Shifting on her seat, she continued eavesdropping. "I want Rudy and Kim to be present when I tell Jack."

"Why?" There was nothing but suspicion on Mr. Brewer's voice and Kim agreed wholeheartedly with it.

"Because they are the ones who are holding Jack back. They are the ones who need to let him go."

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* * *

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Ultimately, Kim decided against joining them for lunch altogether. She sent a text to Jack, telling him something had came up and wouldn't be able to join them after all, then fled the restaurant, hoping the Brewers hadn't noticed her exit.

Maybe it was cowardly of her, but after Mrs. Brewer explained to her husband in detail the generous offer she was going to make her son in an attempt to lure Jack away from Seaford, away from Kim herself, the blonde had been devastated, and confused.

It wasn't like she couldn't see Mrs. Brewer point of view. She did, even agreed to it to a point. Kim was aware that on paper, Jack's choices were questionable, as it always seemed the black belt man let opportunities for greatness pass him by in order to remain on Seaford. And that on it self was enough for anyone to question Jack's sanity. Seaford was, after all, a small town, where criminality rate was high and dumb kids abound. Why would someone like Jack, who had seen so much of the world, chose to stay? Well, Kim had to agreed with his mother, it was because of her.

Kim was aware she could be narcissistic at times, but she knew that wasn't an ego trip. Jack and her had dance around each other since the first moment they saw one another back in High School. Sure, there had been other people who caught their attention, and she got involved with someone briefly back when they lost the dojo to the _Black Dragons_. But even then, they had gravitated back to one another. Kim was no fool, she knew that Jack had loved her from the very beginning, and though she wasn't the only reason he had stayed when he had the chance to go, she knew without a doubt, she was a big part of the why.

But the fact was, they weren't kids anymore.

When he could have the world, how could she stand on his way?

Almost drowning with her feelings, Kim was not surprised to find herself at her childhood home. It has been almost two years since she and Jack had moved in together, and though she considered their place her home, so was the house she grew up in.

Parking the car on the front lawn, Kim made her way to the small garage where she knew her father was working on one of his projects. Sure enough, as she leaned against the open door, she saw her dad under a very old car.

"Is that the old junk you bought when I was sixteen and hoped to fix as a gift for me?" She asked, pushing aside her feelings about Jack for a moment, basking on the nostalgic feeling that overtook her.

"Kim!" Rolling out from under the car, Chuck went quickly to his oldest daughter, wrapping his arms around her tightly, despite the fact that he was tainted with oil, grease and dirt. "Baby, what are you doing here?" He kissed her hair tenderly, before stepping back to observe his child.

"Can I just come in for a random visit?" Kim asked, smiling softly at her father. She wanted, very much, to leaned against him like she used to when she was a little girl.

"Of course you can." He said, catching the sadness in her eyes. "But you don't. You usually come in on Sunday for dinner with Jack." That had been something he had insisted on, when Kim and Jack told them they were moving together, weeks before they even finished High School. Both Karate alumni had agreed, showing dutifully once a week for Sunday dinner. Of course, Chuck and Jack also spend some time together, at least once a month. Funny, how he spent more time with the boy than his daughter. "So, what's wrong?" He asked, moving away from Kim and going to the small refrigerator he kept in the garage. He chose a beer for himself and a soft drink for Kim.

"Nothing. I don't know." She sighed and took the can, but didn't open it. "Dad, do you think that I'm holding Jack back from his full potential?" She finally asked, taking a seat on a small bench.

"What? Of course not. Where did you get that?" Dragging an old chair to where Kim was, he sat in front of her. "Did you and Jack had a fight?"

Kim shook her head quickly, opening the drink, just to have something to do with her hands. "I overhead his mother saying some things. She thinks Jack could be more than what he is. To hear her tell it, he should be a commercial brand right now. The next, - and better - Bobby Wasabi, and the only reason he isn't, is because of me."

For a moment Chuck was quiet, taking in Kim's words. "Jack has a lot of potential, Kim. But he is also very stubborn."

"What that has to do with anything?"

"Jack does as Jack pleases." He said simply, before taking a sip from his beer. "If he really wanted to be a Karate Start, I bet this house and your mother, that he would be by now."

Kim snorted at the bit of betting her mother, no doubt said woman would be outraged if she were to hear her husband saying such thing. "So you think he stays here because of his feelings for me?"

He was glad to see humor returning to his child, so he relaxed on his chair. "I'm sure that's part of it. But Kim, his feelings for you are hardly an inconvenience. It's not like you two would have to stop seeing each other. We live in the twenty one century, where technology makes it possible to keep up with people in Timbuktu."

Not complete content, but knowing her father was right, Kim nodded. "You are right. I guess, I was just being insecure."

"You love him." That was something he could say easily now, though it hadn't been easy for him to accept when they first got together. "And because you love him, you want him to be happy, to do his best, to succeed. But Kim, you also need to trust that Jack is going to do what's right for himself. He chose the life he has right now."

"I know but,"

"But nothing," Chuck interrupted Kim, though his voice was gentle. "Has he said he is unhappy? That he regrets his decisions?"

Kim shook her head quickly. "No. I thought he was happy. It wasn't until his mother said all those things that I started to wonder."

"Then, don't let her put words on Jack's mouth or thoughts on your head. Parents are always going to want the world for their children. Even when all their children want is just a small piece of it."

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* * *

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The talk with her father helped. As did spending time with her mother and little sister. Kim stayed with them all evening, reminiscing of times long gone. By the time darkness fell, and she was ready to go home to her apartment with Jack, she was feeling more like herself.

There was still a part of her that worried about what would greet her when she did arrived at their place. No doubt, the offer Jack's mother was planning on making him was a very tempting one, and despite what her father had claimed, well, who was to say that Jack couldn't say yes? After all, he always dreamed of having his own dojo.

Because she was working herself into a nervous mass again, she forced herself to put that away from her mind. She'll be forced to face that eventually, but for the moment, the only thing Kim had to do was arrived at their place.

Jack was of course, waiting for her. Or at least, Kim liked to pretend he was, though when she came in, he was in their living room playing video games. As always was the case, her heart gave her a tug, and she finally felt like coming home. Being where she belong. Which was beside Jack.

"Lucy, I'm home!" She said, setting her bag and cellphone on top of the table, and walking towards the living room, sitting behind Jack on the sofa.

Jack grinned, at her, whispering softly to the headset that he was taking a break. Kim knew he was speaking to their neighbor and mutual best friend, Jerry. From his place on the floor, he crawled to Kim, wrapping his arms around her tiny waist when he reached her, pushing her forward to the edge of the couch. "Hey you," He said, leaning towards Kim, brushing his lips against the blonde's. "Missed you today."

"I know. I'm sorry." She brought her hand to his face, her fingers brushing against his golden brown skin, her eyes fixed on his. "Missed you, too." She said, leaning down to kiss him once more, her tongue rolling against his lower lip asking for entrance.

Gladly, Jack open his mouth in invitation, kissing his long time girlfriend properly, before he tugged her off the couch and onto the floor with him. Kim, yelped falling atop of him. Caught by surprise, she playfully punched him on the arm, before resting her head against his chest, not bothering to stand up from the floor. Lazily, content, Jack simply laughed and wrapped an arm around Kim's waist to keep her like she was, laying practically on top of him, while he played with her long blonde tresses with his other hand.

"Are you okay?" He asked after awhile. He was dying to tell her what happened at lunch, what she had missed, but there was something about her demeanor that gave him pause. "You only said something came up during lunch. I was worried."

"Oh. Sorry." Kim said, letting out a sigh. "It was nothing. I spent the day with my family. Was.. Everything okay at lunch?" She asked timidly, refusing to give in on the urge to sit up and watch Jack's face.

"Oh, you should have been there, Kim!" He said animatedly now that she had assuaged his fears. "My mother and Rudy got into a fight. It was awesome."

"What?" Surprised, she raised her head to look at him, her eyes going wild. "Why?"

"I know!" He laughed, though he was still lying on the floor. "You should have seen her face. I don't think anyone has ever argued with her. It was priceless." He snickered at the memory, but started to explained after Kim poked him with one of her sharp, long nails. "She started by giving a speech about how I was meant for greatness and how I was wasting my time and my talents here." He rolled his eyes, and Kim knew then that, that had not been a new speech to Jack. "Then she went on about how she knew I wanted my own dojo, and how she had this friend who own ones in L.A. Says he just bought another Dojo and wanted me to move there to run the first one."

She had gotten that much from his mother, but tried her best not to let that show on her face. "So, what did you said?" Kim asked timidly, dread clawing at her.

"Of course, I said, thanks but not thanks. I'm very happy working with Rudy at _Bobby Wasabi Dojo._" He paused, then snickered again. "That's when she turned on Rudy. Didn't he saw how he was using me? How I was wasting my time being a sensei when I could be running my own dojo, and how I was taking dumb classes when I should be at _Harvard_." Kim snorted at that, Jack was bright, of course, but he was no Harvard smart. He nodded as if agreeing with her. "I know. But she was in a roll. In any case, Rudy just listed to her, then he told her just where she was wrong. You know how he told me that if I didn't took those curses he was going to fired me as sensei?" Kim nodded, that has puzzled everyone, Jack most of all, but he had complied, albeit, reluctantly. "Well it turns out he had a plan, which he wasn't ready to tell me now, but my mother insulted him into doing it anyway. Kim, he is giving me the dojo."

"What?" Shocked senseless, Kim only stare at him.

"I know!" He shook his head, sitting up now. "I couldn't believe it. That's when he explained that he made me took those management courses because I will need them to run the dojo. See, it's not just about teaching Karate. That I know, but I need to know how to handle all other responsibilities, the business side of it. Kim, he always meant to leave it to me."

"Jack this is great!" She grinned at him, throwing her arms around his neck, holding tightly onto him.

Laughing he hugged her back. "Mind you, it's not going to be for a long time. For one, Rudy is no where near ready to retired, and for another, I still need to finish my bachelor's degree. But just knowing it will be mine one day. Kim, that's our dojo."

Kim kissed his cheek, understanding that when he said 'we' he didn't meant just the two of them. But all the warriors. They knew first hand what how much that building meant to them all. How it was more than a place to hang out, a place to learn karate. It was their home.

"Congratulations, Jack!" Kim said, stepping back slightly, cupping his face on her hands. "How did your mother took that?" She was half afraid to ask, but well, the woman was still Jack's mother.

"My mom," he shrugged. "She'll come around. She was never fond of Seaford, but she knows this is the only place I have ever felt like I belong. She loves me, and wants what's best for me. She is just having a hard time accepting that what she thinks it's best for me, doesn't exactly match what I know is the best for myself."

Kim smiled at how his words mirrored that of her father's. Shifting on the floor, she straddle Jack, locking her arms around his neck. "You love this dumb town so much?" She asked, mostly musing aloud.

"Of course. I traveled a lot with my parents, you know that. This is the first place I was long enough to call home. The place I made true friends. The place I had my first crush, then the other dozen crushes that came after. Where I started doing Karate again, where I learned not to give up. Where I kissed a girl for the first time. Where I knew I was in love with my first crush, who happened to be my best friend." Holding tightly to Kim, Jack nuzzled her neck. "I have been all over the world, yet this is the only place I know without a doubt I always want to go back to."

As Jack kissed Kim's neck softly, she couldn't help but smile, relief flooding her. Maybe she had been making much about nothing, but hearing his words had been just what she needed. She hadn't been holding him back after all. She simply was the icing to his cake.

"Jack." Her fingers tangling on his perfect brown hair, Kim pulled his head back, making her look at her. She intended to tell him about that afternoon, about having overheard the conversation between his parents, but as he looked at her, she felt her heart melt, "I love you." She said instead, leaning in and taking his lips with her own.

He kissed her back eagerly, before flipping them. "Now," He said, as he laid her down on the floor, a wicked grin on his face. "Let's misbehave so I have something good to say tomorrow when I call your show." Wiggling his brows playfully, he lowered his lips to her, kissing away her laughter.

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**FIN**

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_AN(2): _If you made it this far, thank you. I hope you enjoyed the story. Questions, comments, suggestions, opinions are always welcome. Virtual cookies for the ones who review!


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